Chicardgo School Launches Groundbreaking New Metric for High School Rankings

The Elite College Placement Index (ECPI) offers an outcome-driven perspective on a high school's success in placing students into top-tier universities

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Sept. 17, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Chicardgo School today announced the launch of the Elite College Placement Index (ECPI), a new data-driven system for ranking high schools. Prioritizing outcomes over inputs, the ECPI is engineered to measure a single, critical outcome: a school's track record of placing its graduates into the nation's most selective universities and liberal arts colleges. The index synthesizes publicly available matriculation data, using a proprietary weighting system to evaluate a school’s performance in placing students at Top 25 National Universities, Top 15 Liberal Arts Colleges, and top in-state and regional universities.

A Singular Focus: The ECPI measures one specific outcome—placement into elite universities—providing an unparalleled level of clarity for families.
Complete Objectivity: Unlike rankings that rely on subjective parent surveys, the ECPI is built on verifiable matriculation outcomes from open and public data sources.
A Unique Tool for Parents: No other ranking on the market is built to answer this specific question, making it an invaluable resource for navigating the competitive college admissions landscape.

To explore the full rankings, view detailed school profiles, and learn more about the ECPI methodology, visit school.chicardgo.com.

Key National Insights

Matriculation to Top 25 National Universities

Largest Gaps Between Private & Public School Performance

(Based on the difference in median T25 matriculation rates)

Bay Area: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~31 percentage points.
New York City: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~20 percentage points.
Los Angeles: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~19 percentage points.
Boston: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~14 percentage points.
Washington, DC: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~12 percentage points.

T25 National University Matriculation - Private Public Gap

Cities Where Public Schools Outperform

In most metro areas, the median private school has an advantage in elite placements. However, in the following cities, the median public high school sends a higher percentage of graduates to T25 universities. Only cities with a median difference greater than 1.0% are listed.

Phoenix
Kansas City
Orlando
Indianapolis
Houston
Nashville

Cities with Highest Private School Median

(Median T25 matriculation rates for private schools)

Bay Area: ~42.0%
New York City: ~39.0%
Los Angeles: ~30.0%
Boston: ~28.0%
Washington, DC: ~28.0%

Cities with Highest Public School Median

(Median T25 matriculation rates for public schools)

Phoenix: ~25.0%
Atlanta: ~23.0%
Denver: ~22.0%
Seattle: ~20.0%
New York City: ~19.0%

Matriculation to Top 15 Liberal Arts Colleges

Largest Gaps Between Private & Public School Performance

(Based on the difference in median T15 matriculation rates)

Bay Area: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~16 percentage points.
Los Angeles: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~12 percentage points.
New York City: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~10.5 percentage points.
Boston: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~8 percentage points.
Washington, DC: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~6 percentage points.
Denver: Private schools outperform public by a median of ~6 percentage points.

T15 Liberal Arts College Matriculation - Private Public Gap

Cities Where Public Schools Outperform

In some metro areas, the median public school has an advantage in elite placements. The following cities show a higher median matriculation rate for public high schools:

Houston
Orlando
San Antonio

Cities with Highest Private School Median

(Median T15 matriculation rates for private schools)

Bay Area: ~20.0%
New York City: ~19.0%
Boston: ~15.0%
Los Angeles: ~13.0%
Denver: ~12.0%

Cities with Highest Public School Median

(Median T15 matriculation rates for public schools)

New York City: ~8.5%
Boston: ~7.0%
Atlanta: ~6.0%
Denver: ~6.0%
Nashville: ~5.5%

About Chicardgo School

Chicardgo School is a data-driven education platform dedicated to helping families make informed decisions. Its flagship tool, the Elite College Placement Index (ECPI), is the only national high school ranking that focuses exclusively on the outcome of elite university placement. Chicardgo School is part of the Chicardgo digital media portfolio, operated by Northwestern Media LLC. Learn more about the Chicardgo brands and company mission at chicardgo.com.

Media Contact

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Chicardgo Media Relations
press@chicardgo.com

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T15 Liberal Arts College Matriculation - Largest Gaps

Metropolitan Areas with Largest Gaps Between Private & Public High School

T15 Liberal Arts College Matriculation - Highest Public

Cities with Highest Public School Median

T25 National University Matriculation - Highest Public

Cities with Highest Public School Median

T15 Liberal Arts College Matriculation - Public Outperform

Cities Where Public Schools Outperform

T25 National University Matriculation - Highest Private

Cities with Highest Private School Median

T25 National University Matriculation - Public Outperform

Cities Where Public Schools Outperform

T15 Liberal Arts College Matriculation - Highest Private

Cities with Highest Private School Median

T25 National University Matriculation - Largest Gaps

Metropolitan Areas with Largest Gaps Between Private & Public High School

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